Marshawn Lynch Injury: Seahawks RB Reportedly Will Have Sports Hernia Surgery

The Seattle Seahawks are only one game behind the Atlanta Falcons in the race for the second NFC wild-card spot, but they will reportedly be without star running back Marshawn Lynch for the foreseeable future.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Lynch will have surgery on his sports hernia Wednesday and will miss "about a month." Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports added the organization hopes Lynch is "back strong" by late December before a potential playoff appearance.

The 29-year-old back has been a shell of himself this season, racking up just 417 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 111 carries in seven contests. His 3.8 yards-per-carry average would be his lowest mark since 2010, when he averaged 3.5, and this will be his first full year in Seattle without 1,200 rushing yards, barring a miraculous late-season explosion.

Fortunately for the Seahawks, Thomas Rawls looked like an explosive playmaker in Lynch’s place Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. He racked up 209 rushing yards, 46 receiving yards and two total touchdowns in that contest and already topped 100 rushing yards in two other games this year before Sunday’s breakout performance.

In fact, Rawls is averaging 6.0 yards a carry and has 187 more rushing yards than Lynch on 10 fewer carries.

Lynch was a major reason the Seahawks reached the past two Super Bowls, but the offense will be just as effective (if not more so) with Rawls manning the running back spot while Beast Mode recovers from surgery.